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Here is a brief glimpse into tobacco history and events. 6,000 BC – Native Americans first start cultivating the tobacco plant. Circa 1 BC – Indigenous American tribes start smoking tobacco in religious ceremonies and for medicinal purposes.
Modern cigarettes were invented in 1880 with the invention of the cigarette rolling machine by James Albert Bonsack. However, people have been smoking tobacco for thousands of years and the history of smoking and the historical timeline of tobacco are very rich and complex.
Tobacco was long used in the early Americas. The arrival of Spain introduced tobacco to the Europeans, and it became a lucrative, heavily traded commodity to support the popular habit of smoking. Following the Industrial Revolution, cigarettes became hugely popular worldwide.
The history of smoking dates back to as early as 5000 BC in the Americas in shamanistic rituals. With the arrival of the Europeans in the 16th century, the consumption, cultivation, and trading of tobacco quickly spread.
Surgeon General's report examines the health consequences of lower-tar and nicotine cigarettes. Concludes that lower-yield cigarettes decrease the risk of lung cancer, but have little effect on rates of cardiovascular disease, chronic obstructive pulmonary disease, and fetal damage.
In the US, chewing tobacco—made by mixing molasses with the leaves—was the main way to consume the plant through the nineteenth century. But Americans also began adopting cigarettes, which had first caught on in Europe.
The history of tobacco use in the Americas goes back over 1,000 years when natives of the region chewed or smoked the leaves of the plant now known as Nicotiana rustica (primarily in the north) and Nicotiana tabacum (mostly in the south).